In years past, the Iranian regime used to hold marches and events linked to what it called Quds Day.
In 2025, for instance, Ayatollah Khamenei issued a statement about the Quds Day rallies that were expected on the last Friday of Ramadan in Iran. Iran also supported these rallies around the world.
This year, it is unclear if the events will go forward as planned. Iran says it expects to hold the rallies on March 13. This is the largest annual mobilization supporting the Palestinian cause, it claims.
Amid the war, Iran’s attempt to use the Palestinian cause as a rallying cry may be curtailed.
In the UK, the government has banned marches that were expected to take place Sunday in London.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the rallies had been banned at the request of the Metropolitan Police.
She said she was satisfied that “doing so is necessary to prevent serious public disorder, due to the scale of the protest and multiple counterprotests, in the context of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East,” the BBC quoted her as saying.
“On Sunday, thousands of demonstrators were expected to march through London for al-Quds Day, an annual demonstration in support of Palestinian rights,” the BBC reported. “But the march, which has taken place in the UK for more than 40 years, has been banned by the home secretary, Shabana Mahmood.”
Iranian-backed Quds Day events may take place elsewhere in 2026
It’s possible that Iranian-backed Quds Day events may take place elsewhere. The day is named for Al-Quds, the Arabic name for Jerusalem.
The Islamic revolutionaries in Iran adopted the Palestinian cause when they came to power. They first held Quds Day events in 1979.
This was a way that the Shi’ite regime in Tehran could adopt a cause popular with Muslims and others around the world. The idea was to use Quds Day as an inroad for Iranian Islamic soft power. In this way they penetrated other societies, including the Arab world and also Europe.
Iran has long sought to advance its interests via various layers of soft and hard power. For instance, it funds and arms militias in Iraq, and it funds and arms Hezbollah in Lebanon. It also works with terrorist groups such as Hamas.
In addition, Iran sought over the years to exploit the freedoms of Western democracies to operate. Many Iranian politicians were educated in the West, primarily in the United States.
The war against Iran by the US and Israel was launched on February 28, during Ramadan. This puts Quds Day in a bind. It will likely take place while the war is ongoing.
The Quds Day rallies are expected to take place before one of the important nights of Ramadan, Laylat al-Qadr, the “Night of Power.” It is expected to happen around February 17, based on a moon sighting that evening.
This important night for Muslims might fall slightly earlier, but likely not on Quds Day. As such, Quds Day forms one of the important days before the end of Ramadan.
For the Iranian regime, this is a poignant time, because the war resulted in the death of its supreme leader and the appointment of a new one. The new leader, however, has to hide because of the threat of more airstrikes. As such, it will be difficult for the regime to assemble rallies with officials.
How Iran mobilizes people abroad will be interesting to watch, because Iranian-backed Hezbollah is also in the midst of a war. In Iraq, the Iranian-backed militias have been carrying out attacks as well.
It is possible that Iran will use the day to carry out attacks, including targeting Israel. Iran will want to show that it is not down for the count, and that it can still lash out.